In honor of President's Day I have two options for memorizing all the Presidents of the United States of America. First, from Daniel Leary via YouTube...
And, second, from the White House Historical Society...The American Presidents.
I find it interesting that William Howard Taft, who was inaugurated just 100 years ago (March 4, 1909), is remembered by most mainstream Americans (if he's remembered at all) as the big President; he weighed in at 300 pounds. We don't know or remember the nuances of his Presidency or the character he presented. I think that's notable because its a comment on memory and history, historical perspective, and how we describe complex, multi-dimensional people in one dimensional ways.
To rememdy that for myself, I read about William Howard Taft on Wikipedia. It turns out he was 'a staunch advocate of World Peace bordering on pacifism'. So, celebrate this day by taking a moment to read about the multi-dimensionsal William Howard Taft via Wikipedia.
Finally, here's a link that delves a little deeper into Presidential information. In C-SPAN's 2009 Historian's Presidential Leadership Survey, William Howard Taft ranks 24th out of the 42 men who have been President in terms of leadership (Obama is not included yet, and remember, Cleveland was President twice).
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